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Thank you for checking out my classroom website. Below is my classroom blog, where I include pictures of student work and instructional videos. Above I have links to our student Artsonia gallery, Youtube channel and my Prezis. If you have any questions, leave me a comment and I'll respond as quickly as possible.

Our learning objective is we will be able to collaborate with our own natural world to observe, create and describe our environment. We began by discussing the differences between a natural environment and a constructed environment. We then read the story "A Day with No Crayons" by Elizabeth Rusch and discussed with a partner all the natural art supplies Liza used to create art during her day. Next we looked at the artwork of Andy Goldsworthy and his use of natural materials in his works of art.Each table brainstormed a concept for their group piece and use the items from nature that I brought into the room to create their work. Each student took a picture of the piece on a iPad before taking the artwork apart. Each student then used a photo filter to edit their photo.

Our learning objective is we will explore nature and how artists use nature to create. We began by using Visual Thinking Strategies to discuss the Lonely Tree, Lonely People by Agnieszka Gradzik and Wiktor Szostalo. We then looked at some natural items from nature and completed some observational drawings of these items. Next we read the book Leaf Man by Lois Ehlert. Every picture in the story is created by natural items. We then looked at a variety of artworks by other artists like Andy Goldsworthy who make their art from things found in nature.

Finally we worked collaboratively as a table to create a piece of art from the natural items we used earlier in the less for observational drawings. The students really enjoyed touching and experimenting with the pines cones, leaves, sticks and rock I brought into the classroom.

Denise Jackson

Check out my YouTube I've been teaching elementary Art for 18 years the last eight at Becky-David in the Francis Howell School District. Teaching Art is a great job and I absolutely love it! My job is made easier by all the wonderful Art teachers out there who share their ideas and "secrets" with me personally and through the internet. Thank you! Check out & subscribe to my Youtube channel of instructional videos & book read alouds by pressing the button at the top right.